


A Promise for a Better Future

by Feyuui



Category: Fire Emblem Series, Fire Emblem: Fuukasetsugetsu | Fire Emblem: Three Houses
Genre: F/M, Goddess Tower, Night of the ball, Pre-Timeskip, Slight Golden Deer spoilers, holy frick i ship these two so much
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-09-01
Updated: 2019-09-01
Packaged: 2020-10-04 14:33:51
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,377
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20472620
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Feyuui/pseuds/Feyuui
Summary: Marianne felt like the goddess was pushing her to show up at the night of the ball.Little did she know, she’d end up spending the rest of the night at the Goddess Tower with Claude instead.





	A Promise for a Better Future

It was the night of the ball. Everyone was dancing.

Marianne never wanted to be in such a crowded room, but she decided to just go along with it.

For some odd reason, she felt like the goddess wanted her to be here.

“C’mon teach, let’s dance!” She spotted Claude across the ballroom. He was dancing with the professor so gracefully. Marianne was almost caught off guard by how gentle his footwork was. Meanwhile the professor was stumbling across the floor as they tried to keep up with Claude.

She found herself continuously gazing at Claude. _ How can one be so unpredictable yet so elegant…? _She wondered.

Claude’s eyes met hers as he danced with the professor, and she quickly looked away flustered. _ He definitely knew I was staring at him that whole time. _

She walked to the other side of the ballroom quickly.

Without notice, she saw Claude approaching her.

“I noticed you looked lonely in that corner over there so I decided to walk over. But the moment I got there, you were already walking somewhere else” He chuckled.

Whispers started to rise in surrounding the two as he stood by her.

“C-Claude...You should go back to the professor people will–” Marianne paused.

The whispers and mutters got louder. 

“What’s the house leader doing with someone like her?”

“Does he not know what type of crest she has?”

“Isn’t Marianne’s crest the reason for the incident that happened that one time?”

She closed her eyes, hoping for it to end.

_ Dear goddess...Please bring me out of this situation. Take me to your side so I shall no longer suffer.. _.

Suddenly, she felt someone hold onto her hand. She opened her eyes to see Claude, standing there.

“It’ll be okay. Don’t listen to them. They don’t know what they’re talking about. And don’t worry about the professor. They’re dancing with someone else”

Marianne looked at him with sad eyes. “But all the rumours that follow me will follow you now. This is the biggest event in the monastery and now everyone knows that the future leader of the Leicester Alliance approached someone like me. They won’t trust you anymore...”

Claude shook his head.

“Then let’s leave this ballroom. Away from those who have no interest in anything but gossip.”

Claude began to walk out while holding Marianne’s hand.

“But..where will we go?”

Claude turned around and smiled at her.

“You’ll see.”

The two kept walking until there was no one around, and they were standing right next to the Goddess Tower.

It was dark outside. The stars glimmering bright, with a gentle cold breeze in the air.

“I’m not exactly from Fodlan, y’know? Yeah, my ma’ is from House Riegan and I bear the Riegan crest..But my pa’ is actually not even from Fodlan. I can relate to how you get treated by everyone.”

Marianne looked confused. “Wait...How can you relate to how I get treated?”

Claude looked at Marianne and winked. “That’s a secret for another day. It involves a whole life backstory that’ll probably bore you at the moment.”

It went silent for a bit.

The two of them looked at the stars.

“Have you ever gazed up at the stars when you felt sad? I mean. You might’ve just prayed to the goddess or something but...I always found myself gazing up at the stars. There’s millions of them. Always glowing. I felt like...maybe I could one day be a star in someone’s life. Help them with their problems…”

Claude looked down before quickly realizing what he said.

“Heheh...That sounded a bit cheesy. Sorry ‘bout that.”

Marianne smiled.

“No, it’s fine. Your speech was quite inspiring actually. I…I never looked at myself as a star. I always thought of myself as a burden...Whenever I have fun or genuinely enjoy myself I feel like I’m not deserving of it. In all honesty, the way you think is out of the world in my mind”

Claude gently placed his hand on her shoulder. “I used to have that mindset. Then I realized I could use my position to make my traits a positive rather than a negative. One day I hope I, as well as others can look at myself and be proud rather than ashamed. It took awhile to change my mindset. But Marianne...I believe you can change your mindset too. You can be the person you dream of.”

Marianne looked at him straight into his eyes.

It was the first time she directly made clear eye contact for longer than a few seconds. She realized how stunning his emerald green eyes were.

“What if I can’t…”

She said, before quickly looking back at the stars. She got lost in how mesmerizing his face was.

_ He’s definitely gonna think I’m a creep after that… _

“But you can. Look at me, Marianne. We’re both from despised lineages. We understand each other on a level no one else can.”

Marianne jumped back a bit at that. “P-please don’t start getting into the specifics about my lineage...Students already have been piecing things together and–”

Claude politely hushed her.

“It’s okay. I won’t say anything about it if it makes you feel uncomfortable mentioning it. But it’s obvious we both had rough childhoods because of things we couldn’t even have control over. Crests...parents...the very blood that runs through our veins..Something we can't choose, is what makes people judge us. It’s a truly unfair world. I never liked blind reliance on the goddess, but after coming to Fodlan, I realized it was okay to have a little faith every now and then, y’know? So that’s why, on this night… Let’s pray to the goddess. Let’s both make a vow that we’ll change the world to be accepted.”

Marianne looked down. She agreed with him, all of this lineage stuff was cruel. No matter how much she prayed to the goddess, she couldn’t escape her crest. And He can’t escape his lineage.

“Yes...We’ll reshape the world. Together. Dear goddess, hear out our wishes…”

Marianne smiled as she prayed.

_ And...Dead goddess...Please, never take me away to your side until I’ve fulfilled my dreams and promises. Claude taught me to accept myself… _

Claude looked at her, in awe at how graceful she looked. Marianne may have not taken proper care of herself all the time, but the way she braided her hair reminded him of his home.

“P-please excuse me if this is out of place but…”

She turned around and walked behind him, then wrapped her arms around him. “I...I know this isn’t something I’d normally do. But please...can I hug you like this? It’ll be easier for me to talk without anyone looking at me.”

Tears began to flow in her eyes.

She buried her head into Claude’s back. He gently smiled, and held onto her hands.

“This is the first time I’ve had a conversation with someone that didn’t result in them shouting at me for my lack of confidence… Or me running away...I know you call yourself untrustworthy, but something about you, Claude...Makes me want to never let go of someone like you.”

It went quiet for a while before Claude spoke up again.

“In 5 years, let’s both make sure we’re happier, brighter people who can let go of our pasts. We’ll reshape the world from then on.”

Marianne hugged Claude tighter.

“Yes...It’ll take me awhile to get used to start thinking positively...And I may resort back to my negative state every once in a while...But I’ll get used to it eventually..”

Marianne let go of the hug and sat down on the ground, looking in the direction of the Leicester Alliance.

“I’m sorry if that hug was awkward...but I’m sure you’ll be a great leader one day, Claude.”

“It wasn’t awkward, don’t worry about it. And thanks, I’ll make sure we’ll both be able to see a peaceful world where neither of us are hated for who we are.

Until then, let’s stay by each other’s side and make sure we’re there to comfort each other.

That is...If you want to.”

Marianne let out the brightest smile.

“I’d love to.”

  


**Author's Note:**

> This is my first fic in about 4-5 years, so I’m sorry if I’m rusty or if I repeat words, etc. I’m hoping to get back into writing fics so I can make more MariClaude content.


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